Algerian boxer Imane Khelif wins again amid gender controversy at Olympics

PARIS – Algeria’s Imane Khelif, engulfed in controversy over gender eligibility at the Paris Olympics , returned to the boxing ring Saturday.

In an raucous atmosphere, she beat Hungary’s Anna Luca Hamori on points by unanimous decision in a women's quarterfinal bout at the North Paris Arena. Khelif sobbed as she exited the ring and later was draped with an Algerian flag as she walked past reporters.

Dozens of spectators with Algerian flags greeted Khelif with loud cheers as she headed to the ring for her fight. Her opponent drew mostly boos, with a smattering of cheers.

Throughout the fight, the Algerian fans, appearing to number in the hundreds, alternately cheered, sang and chanted "Imane." And they erupted in cheers when she was declared the winner.

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Khelif, 25, now is guaranteed of winning at least a bronze medal by advancing to the semifinals in the welterweight division (146 pounds) scheduled for Sunday.

In Olympic boxing, bronze medals are awarded to the losing semifinalists, with a single-elimination format used for the tournament.

The issue over gender eligibility sparked debate after Khelif beat Italy’s Angela Carini Thursday in her opening bout . The Italian abandoned the fight 46 seconds into it after getting punched in the face.

Outrage flared on social media , with Khelif having been disqualified from the 2023 world championships after tournament officials from the International Boxing Association said she failed a gender eligibility test.

Taiwanese boxer Lin Yu-Ting also was disqualified at the world championships and is competing here .

The IOC has said the two fighters met criteria to compete at the Paris Games and pointed out Khelif and Lin both competed at the Tokyo Games.

The Hungarian Boxing Association has lodged a protest of Hamori's match with Khelif, and after the fight a Hungarian boxing official said, "consequences must be carefully evaluated after the Games." IOC spokesman Mark Adams told USA TODAY Sports by email that he was unaware of a protest.

Using her jab with expertise, Khelif controlled the fight. But in the third round, the referee deducted a point from her for holding as the two fighters tumbled to the canvas together twice and the Hungarian went down once more.

But after the fight, the two boxers embraced.

"This was a hard fight ... and I think it was good fight," Hamori told reporters.

The IOC has accused the International Boxing Association of making an arbitrary decision in disqualifying the boxers from the 2023 world championships after both had won medals. IOC President Thomas Bach said there's never been any doubt the boxers are cisgender women.

Long plagued by scandal and controversy, the IBA no longer is recognized by the IOC as boxing’s international federation. But the organization has has retained control of the world championships.

Lin, 28, won her opening bout Friday and will fight again Sunday in the quarterfinals of the featherweight division (125 pounds).

Neither boxer has spoken to the media at the Olympics.

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Algerian boxer Imane Khelif wins again amid gender controversy at Olympics